First draft
"Miss Zephyr." The Umbra's hologram materialized in the middle of the room, his voice ringing in Dia's ears.
"Umbra." She whispered, her eyes lingering on his eerie helmet as he loomed over her. She couldn't help but take a step back when his creepy shadow inched forward, his multiple bionic arms spreading out like a huge spider was about to pounce on her, enveloping her body in a death grip.
"It's been a while, hasn't it? I'm..."He paused as if he was searching for a word he'd rarely used, "...glad to see you are doing well. But let's dispense with the pleasantries. We don't have much time. I suppose I should apologize for what happened with Gibson. It was a terrible miscalculation on my part."
"Miscalculation?" Her voice was incredulous. Obviously, the Umbra didn't answer. Not a surprise. It seemed to be a habit of his.
"But rejoice. The person who betrayed you...who betrayed me, is already in my custody. She's not getting away with this."
Dia drew nearer, her curiosity bypassing her fear for the moment, "Suzanne? Did you catch her? Why did she..."
"We have no time to talk about her now." Reyes quickly interjected.
She opened her mouth wide, turning to look at him, "But..."
"Leave it alone." He warned.
Dia scowled at him, but the Umbra was a bit like time: he waited for no one.
"You must have a lot of questions." He continued as nothing happened, "But in the end, it all comes down to one simple question: Why me? Why are they looking for me?"
Dia tensed, her whole body shaking as she held her breath.
"Unfortunately, I don't have the answer to that question. I don't know why the Collective wants you."
Dia let out a breath she hadn't been aware she was holding, relief suffusing her features.
"But I know how this started. It was a dream, two men working toward the same goal, the evolution of the human race."
"You and Gibson?" She asked.
"Don't interrupt him, Dia." Reyes whispered.
Dia couldn't help but lift her chin in mute defiance and glare at him. Reyes stared back at her, but the Umbra just kept talking. He didn't seem to care about their staring contest.
"However, right from the start, they had to face countless obstacles." He said, "At first, they thought the problem lay in the lack of resources. That's why they needed a third party, someone with unlimited funds."
Dia's face went blank, "The Emperor. You're talking about the emperor."
"It was so easy." The Umbra said, his toneless voice reverberating in Reyes' quarters, "The emperor knew the Empire was a giant with clay feet, its foundations crumbling under the weight of corruption, the expense created by the Navy, the tool he and the past emperors used to maintain their power. The only viable solution was to downsize the fleet, reshape the empire and turn a parasitic aberration, based on exploitation and repression, into a self-sustaining economy. Of course, that's the only thing the emperor couldn't do. He was afraid that the Fringe worlds would take up arms, slipping beyond his grasp. The only alternative was to colonize new planets, but he knew that the Imperial Navy wasn't powerful enough to defeat the Collective. The emperor was running out of options when he met someone. This person was a young man, a researcher fresh out of the science academy, and yet he was so different from the usual mainstream scientists."
Dia let out a harsh breath, "Gibson."
"He offered the emperor an alternative, a way to fight the Collective on equal ground. That's why the emperor broke a taboo, going against everything the Empire stands for. Of course, he had to keep it a secret. His entire power is based on fear, the illusion the citizens of the empire need his protection against the galaxy most feared bogeyman, a technologically advanced race that embodies everything the human race fears: To be replaced by machines, or worse, to become like them. The fool was so desperate he didn't realize his chief researcher was using him." He shook his head, "It's a pity that even that wasn't enough. Gibson is brilliant, a real genius, but his research progress was too slow. That's why I suggested we need help, maybe a new ally, to speed things up. "
Dia wrapped her arms around herself, "The Collective."
"It was just an attempt, we didn't really think they would accept our proposal. After all, we were asking them to share their technology with us. Imagine our surprise when they actually accepted."
Dia's stomach knotted, her lips quivering, "What did they want in exchange?"
It was Reyes who answered, "Not what, Dia, but who."
No.
Her body shook, just once. It was like a foreshock, the small tremor before the real earthquake.
The Umbra's gloved hands creaked when he raised the index finger, "The Collective requested only one thing: we had to find one woman. You, miss Zephyr."
Dia desperately shook her head, trying to deny it but the Umbra was merciless.
"You may not know it, but the Siren wasn't the first ship that trespassed on the Collective's space. The Empire tried to send small exploration vessels for decades. Do you know what happened to them?" Dia shrank back when his arm made a swish sound, cutting through the air like a blade, "Nothing, absolutely nothing. With the exception of the Mermaid, your mother's ship, the only thing the Collective ever did was disable their shields and hyperdrive before using a tractor beam to drag them back to the Delatory system. Care to guess why that time was different?"
Because I was on board.
"I did tell you, didn't I? Every great hunter needs a great bait. The emperor is no different. I don't know how he found out, but he knew about you, miss Zephyr. He kept you under surveillance for a while. Probably he was trying to discover why the Collective was so interested in you, but in the end, he was forced to act. The empire's economy was imploding. He needed an excuse, an enemy so scary that even the disillusioned inhabitants of the Fringe worlds would have no other choice but to rally around him. That's just a small part of the story, of course. Suffice to say, you have all the interest in helping me. You've nowhere to go. Besides, I don't know what the Collective is planning to do, but I know the emperor played right into their hands when he decided to use Gibson's robots. The Empire will fall. It's inevitable."
She jolted awake, "W-What...what do you mean?"
"But don't worry, we can still save the human race, you and I." He said, once again avoiding the question, "All this, of course...providing you're able to find Gibson. You still have three days, miss Zephyr. Use your time wisely."
Dia opened her eyes wide, "Wait...what? How I should do that? Gibson is still on the planet and you can't just..."
However, the hologram flickered, and the Umbra's image suddenly vanished, leaving her alone with Reyes.
"Are you kidding me?" She turned, furiously glaring at Reyes, "What the hell is..."
"Calm down, Dia. It's not as bad as you think. Gibson already escaped. The Collective wasn't able to catch him."
Dia narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing him, "How do you know?"
Reyes just shrugged, "Does it matter?"
Dia huffed, shoving her hair away from her face, "Yes, Reyes, it matters."
"No, it doesn't." Reyes insisted, "What is important right now is to find Gibson. That's the only thing that really matters, Dia."
She rubbed her temples, "Fine. Let's just leave that aside for the moment." She conceded, but her tone was still filled with frustration, "How am I supposed to find him?"
"I wouldn't worry about that. Now Gibson knows about you, Dia." He explained, "I suspect he will contact you first."
Dia shivered, her shoulders sagging as she remembered what happened on the train.
"Don't worry. What happened on the planet..." He tightened his lips, "...won't happen again. We'll be ready this time."
Dia crossed her arms over her chest, "Yeah? Sorry but I don't believe you, Reyes."
Reyes looked hurt but Dia ignored the pang of guilt she was feeling and asked, "By the way...who are you, the Umbra's spokesperson?"
Reyes frowned, "Come on, Dia. You should know by now that the Umbra doesn't like answering questions."
Dia eyed him warily, but he just cleared his throat, "Is there anything you want to ask me about?"
Dia tried to stay focused but yawned, sudden fatigue overwhelming her.
She rubbed her eyes, "Many things, but they can wait. For the moment...just answer one question."
Reyes bobbed his head, "Shoot."
"The Umbra knew I'm valuable to the Collective. So, why didn't he hand me over to them?"
Reyes 's lips just curled a bit, but that slight smile seemed more real than his usual grin.
He stared at her for a long moment without saying anything. Then he went to the door, opened it but he didn't leave yet.
"I think you just answered your own question." He said, leaving her alone.